Happy Monday!

On what is sure to be a big week at the North Pole there is all kinds of talk here about what needs to be done. Everyone is quite excited. This week is all about getting ready to see Santa off on his big ride.

Over at the sleigh barn they are starting to erect the grandstand that is used for the crowds that will be gathering for Santa’s launch. Attending Santa’s launch is one of the biggest events at the North Pole and every elf hopes to be there.

There will be big news this week as each department does different things in order for Santa to be ready to take off.

Perhaps one of the more unsung and unknown departments at the North Pole who will be working so hard over the next several days is the Department of North Pole Security.

They are a very important group of elves. Their job, especially after Santa takes off, is to keep Santa safe.

We talked to Elf Agent X about this. He is the elf in charge of keeping Santa safe. It is his job to worry about that.

Keeping Santa safe means protecting him and the reindeer from harm when they are away from home. That could mean anything from bad weather to sleigh accidents. It also means knowing about bad guys out there who may not like Santa and want to do him harm.

In most cases, keeping Santa safe means keeping people from slowing Santa down on Christmas Eve. It is not unusual for Santa to encounter well-meaning people who just want Santa to stay a while on Christmas Eve. He would love to stay, in most cases, but of course on Christmas Eve he can’t. He has to keep moving.

For years there was that guy in Peabody, Maine in the USA who tried to kidnap Santa every year. He tried everything to make it happen. He tried dropping a net on Santa when Santa was on his roof. He tried spraying his roof with sticky stuff that would make it impossible for Santa to leave (Santa just didn’t land on his roof that year). He did this stuff nearly every year.

Finally, Elf Agent X and a team of elves had to go talk to the guy. Finally he stopped.

These are the kinds of things Elf Agent X and his team of hard working elves have to think about.

We are hoping he stops by on Christmas Eve when Santa is in flight to tell us more stories over the radio. He’s very interesting.